Trials of Time
by Lighrael
Summary: Time has passed, wars fought, lives lived. Hyrule has evolved and changed with the seasons, but it is still a land rich with legends. Darkness has woken from its slumber once more to try and claim the Triforce again, and so has the Cycle of the Hero of Time started once more - but with this new Link reluctant to travel Fate's Path, will perminant darkness reign?
1. The Wakeup Call

**Hello, readers! This is Lighrael!**

**I know I haven't actually updated Timeless in a while, but please bare with me, it will be updated soon enough. I wanted to go ahead and add in this second story, one I've wanted to write for a while. I'm a big fan of the Legend of Zelda series, BUT I OWN NOTHING AND THIS IS JUST A GOOD Ol' FANFICTION. Okay, so I sortta own Siari and this new 'Epona', and a few other minor characters… but I'm sure you all get what I mean. **

**Anyways, I hope you all enjoy this new story. I know Timeless and this story share similar names, but I assure you, this one had nothing to do with memory-loss ninjas and shadow wolves. Have fun reading!**

* * *

**Chapter 1**

_What had he done… to end up here __**again**__?_

_Was the fate of a Hero forever doomed to relive a nightmare?_

…

_He was dreaming once more. He could feel the icy numbness settle over his body like the mist settling over the Lost Woods early in the morning. It was like watching shadows race up to meet you when someone put out the only light that kept you seeing. Lonely. Desolate. Cautious. He was frozen. He was trapped in a cage._

_He was standing in a green courtyard._

_The sky was a rich blue overhead. The lush green trees gently bobbed in a warm breeze he couldn't feel. Little picturesque, pastel flowers dappled the uniform lawn, and a quant stone path led to and framed a large fountain that was molded after Hyrule's legendary Triforce. The three corners of the giant triangle jutted out in their familiar directions, the monument obviously the eye-catcher and the object the courtyard was centered around. His vibrant blue hues, richer than the sky overhead, was not looking at the fountain, not for too long anyways. The dream focused in on a girl, sitting on a bench in front of the sparkling water._

_Her hair was long and blonde, her eyes a delicate silvery-blue that was much more pleasant to look at than his harsh hues. She wore a pale, off-white dress with gold and blue embroidery, along with a headband glinting with jewels. She struck him as… regal. She was very beautiful, and her sitting, looking quietly at the Triforce that loomed over her, looked completely natural. A blue ocarina rested in her lap and the dream's edges blurred around her until she was the only thing he could make out clearly. Her face was etched into his mind as she waited for something._

_That was what it looked like she was doing anyways - waiting. For someone. For something. He didn't know, but there she was, sitting by herself, as wonderful as a Goddess. _

_Slowly, the sky seemed to turn color from blue to a sunset burgundy and orange. The shadows rotated along the ground, and his view of the girl shifted until it was like he was standing directly in front of her. At some point, she had started humming a tune. It started a little low, then went up a few notes, and then went a little lower than it had started. Three notes. The beginning of what sounded like a lullaby someone might coo to a baby._

_Something dark flickered behind her, but she didn't see it. She didn't here the subtle crunch of flattening grass underneath her melody. His dream-cloaked mind didn't think anything of it, but approaching footsteps created a sinister, phantom beat._

_The girl looked up to see a bird flutter away from a tree behind him, and the shadow grew closer yet, a rising mountain behind her._

_Three notes. Two introductory ones. The melody started again. It went a little higher…_

_The beast behind the girl swayed to the music, towering over her, and finally, it blocked out the setting sun's blood red light. The lullaby faded on her lips, and her gaze traveled upward to look at the obstruction blocking her light._

_And the monster's jaws clamped around her and instead of a lullaby, there was an ear-splitting scream that could have woke the dead._

The scream echoed deep within Link's pointed ears, and his vibrant blue eyes shot open, his strewn out body jerking as the numbness of the nightmare left him. He was freezing, his skin broke out in a cold sweat while his heart hammered and a flash of heat shot up his head. Groaning and pulling a hand out from it's painful position crammed under his chest, he raked his fingers through his dark golden hair and sat up.

Early morning sunlight flooded in through the east window of his little two-room tree house. After the nightmare, it might have been a welcoming sight, if only it didn't illuminate the layer of dirt on his floor and the dust over the furniture. He had been laying on the wooden floor next to his bed, and his covers hung halfway off his mattress. A large lump of red, feather-like scales was curled up next to him, slowly rising up and down.

'_What in the Goddesses…'_ The thought came drearily as his head spun. He had many nightmares before, but that one felt… different somehow. It was unsettling. He had the urge to feel worried about it too… but he had had too many other dark dreams in the past to really think about it. It had just been another dream.

'_No big deal.'_

He laid on the floor for a while, tangled in bedding, and watched the creature besides him breath in and out, trying to get a hold of his wits and rid his mind of that horrible vision. The girl's scream still echoed in his ears, shattering through the lullaby like glass.

Dust motes floated lazily through the air and the house settled and creaked atop the branches it sat on.

"_Link?"_

He froze just as he was about to sneeze, holding his breath and wincing as he heard the steady sound of someone climbing up the ladder leading to the porch. Though he was still a little groggy and light headed, he knew that female voice. Leaping up, he grabbed his covers and jumped back onto his bed, curling up in them tightly like he'd been there all night. His deep blue hues snapped firmly closed and he forced himself to relax.

"Link, are you still asleep?"

The female voice was in the room now, and he surpressed a shutter. _'Cripes.'_

There was a little snort and then seconds ticked by as he tried to stay as relaxed as possible, even though his arm had started to itch. He was sleeping. He didn't feel the itch. He didn't know she was there.

"Psst!" It was right in his ear. He was about to let out a quiet sigh, as if she had stirred him from his slumber a little, but then he was being yanked to the side and dumped onto the floor, and his nose cracked painfully on the dusty wood. "GAH! Cripes! What was that for?"

"That's for pretending you were asleep, you no-good pile of sticks! I swear, you laze around more than the Great Fairy!"

He sat up cross-legged, eyes smarting and tenderly feeling the bridge of his nose, grimacing. "Please, Siari, you know I'm better than a pile of sticks. I'm more like, say, a deku baba. "

"You mean you have a big head and a bad temper?"

"Uh… So I didn't think that one through."

She snorted, "Yeah, obviously.'

He scowled in response. "Hey, give me a break - I just cracked my nose on the floor so hard that I felt it all the way in my tail bone."

"That wouldn't have happened if you weren't being so lazy, now get up! You know what today is!"

He sighed in exasperation, but did as he was told: untangling himself and wading his sheets up into a pile.

Siari was Kokiri, all five feet, three inches of her. Her hair was dark green, wrapped up in a tight bun at the back of her head with her bangs framing her bright yellow eyes. She wore the typical green tunic and boots, and her skin was as dark as tree bark. A yellow and white fairy fluttered around her head, and upon seeing Link's wide-eyed gaze, glided toward him and chimed in his ears. "_Good morning, Link!_"

"Good morning, Tyla, I see you are much more friendly than Siari today."

To any outsider, she looked around ten or twelve, with unusually smart eyes and adult-like expressions. Link knew she was the same age as he though - seventeen. With a hand placed sassily on her cocked hip, he could imagine her to be even older. He smirked, '_She liked to _act _older!'_

The mass of red curled in a tight ball next to his bed finally stirred, a head emerging and flashing sharp teeth in a yawn. Diamond-shaped, golden eyes opened, slitted pupils sweeping around the room before closing again. Siari locked on the creature in an instant and Link said nothing, happy the beast would feel her wraith too.

His sly smirk fell as she gently ran a hand over the creature's large dragonic head until she opened her eyes and let out a hum of gratification that could be felt on the air from where he was. "Wait a minute, where's her punishment?'

"She's punished enough being around you all the time."

He glared down at her, rubbing the bridge of his nose some more. "How you're acting, I'd have thought you were the one to wake up on the floor this morning…"

"You woke up on the floor?…Did you have another bad dream again?"

'_Oh, so now she was concerned!'_

'Yeah, I had a dream again. Don't worry about it though. It was really random. I don't think it meant anything at all."

The look she gave him said she didn't believe him, but surprisingly enough, she let it slide. He watched wearily as she went outside and then came back in with two big buckets. One had a broom handle sticking out of it.

"What the heck? How'd you get all that stuff up here all by yourself?" The buckets were each half her size. "What are those for anyways?'

"You know today is Cleaning Day!"

"Uh, actually, I was assigned patrol duty this morning."

"Nobody assigns those, you twit! How stupid do you think I am anyways? You are always out patrolling even when you don't really need to. And besides, you'll have to keep guard of your house before long, by the looks of it!"

"And why's that?"

"You spend your time out in the woods so often that you neglect your house. I'm surprised you even remember how to feed yourself! It looks like Redeads could come out of the walls any second!'

"Sheesh, fine, I'll clean some! Goddesses, you're annoying!"

"Good boy!'

He growled and snatched up the broom, and then turned his blue glare on the beast taking up a quarter of the floor. Siari clicked her tongue at her, and she lifted her head curiously. "Come on, Epona, I need your help with some things."

Epona was up in an instant and stalked out the door, following the bossy Forest Child. On the way, her long, banner-like tail slapped against the counter next to the wall and then hit the table, sending cups and plates and a bowl of berries across the floor. Link watched with his head underneath a rainy cloud as the shiny pink berries rolled in all directions and cups spun in circles like a bunch of tops.

"Cripes."

* * *

**Poor Link. Siari might be small, but she has an iron fist and a stubborn will! How'd you all like it? What were your thoughts/ comments? Review and tell me what you're thinking! Please and thanks!**


	2. A Good Boy

**Hello, this is Lighrael again, here to give you all the second chapter of this Zelda fan fiction! **

**I don't own the Zelda game franchise nor am I the creator. This is purely a FANFICTION, and the only characters that belong to me are the minor Ocs.**

**I guess I don't have anything else to say but I hope you guys like this chapter!**

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Chapter 2

_Things seemed to drift slowly in familiar patterns, __**cursed**__ circles._

…

Link did not clean.

'_Cleaning was women's work!_' He winced as he thought how things would turn out for him if he tried to tell Siari that. She would probably beat him up, tie him to a tree in the Lost Woods and let deku scrubs and skull kids use him for target practice for the rest of his days.

Even though he'd rather be swinging around a good deku stick or practicing with his bow, he managed to sweep out the large majority of dust and dirt, a few leaves, and all of the berries that had spilled out on to the porch in an embarrassingly large pile. So, maybe it was sort of a good idea for him to clean his house a little. Sort of. Really, he thought the whole process felt a little unnatural, or maybe he was just out of practice. Either way, he was sure to check down below before sweeping it all off the edge and watching it float down to the ground in an ominous cloud.

Next, he went back inside and looked at the remaining contents of the buckets. One had a large bar of some sort of soap, a wash board, and a long rope. His deep blue hues traveled down to his clothes questioningly, then to his arms, and then they peered curiously at his bed covers and sheets. He shrugged, humph. What was she trying to say, anyways? The other bucket had what appeared to be a glass bottle of deku nut oil and two rags. One was cottony and the other one felt more like leather. Running a finger over his dusty counter to reveal the dull wood underneath, he supposed it could use a dusting and a shining.

First though, he would go down to the river and wash, and then while things were drying, tend to the furniture. Siari better be happy. He could be patrolling the forest right now. He _should_ be making his rounds. The urge to get all of this done as fast as possible sent a queasy sensation rolling through his gut and, gathering up the bedspread and any stray clothes and stuffing them into the bucket with the wash board and soap, in record time, was out of his abused tree house and walking quickly down the street.

How in the world that little Kokiri had managed to get those two buckets up the latter safely was still a mystery to him. They were half her size and, to say the least, he had 'stumbled' on his way down.

"Hey, good morning Link! I see Siari's finally cracked down the whip, eh?" He paused and turned to see Dalec bent over his vegetable garden, methodically pulling carrots out of the ground and stuffing them into a sack.

"Yeah, sadly, she has, though she spent half an hour badgering me beforehand."

"Ah, that is the Siari way."

"Do you plan on making… soup maybe?" Link eyed the carrots and ripe corn and tomatoes, mouth already starting to water at the thought.

Dalec's spring-green eyes sparkled conspiringly, "Ever so subtle, huh? If you catch the fish and get the goat cheese, then I'll let you come over and we can have us a little party. Oh, and don't you keep all of my food to yourself either - you gotta bring Siari and that temple beast with you when you come! "

"Gosh, Dalec, what makes you think I'd leave them out just so I could have all of that delicious soup to myself?"

There was a fairy lazily floating around the guy's head, orange and silver, wings fluttering in the mild breeze. Link suddenly found himself trailing its progress curiously, eyes unblinking. The glow of the mysterious creature reflected softly there.

"You'll get one soon enough."

He blinked, "What?"

"A fairy! You sure are scatterbrained today. Did you not sleep good or something? Maybe it was a good thing after all for you to be cleaning today."

Link let out a little snort of annoyance, suddenly remembering he had a 'job' to do. "Tch. I slept good as I normally do. Well, I guess I need to get down to the river… See you, Dalec."

The Kokiri nodded and waved before moving on to his tomatoes.

* * *

Once the dream had more or less faded from his mind, he supposed this morning was a good one. Usually, he was up before the sun and the birds, but it was kind of nice to sleep in sometimes. When he didn't have to clean, anyways.

The air was crisp and clean and smelled of leaves and earth, shimmering with the Essences of Life that kept the Kokiri eternally young. With each breath, he felt invigorated, but of course, its mystical powers had no real affect on him. He was the largest person around, if you didn't count the Great Deku Tree, standing around six feet, three, and still growing every so often. His house was one of the largest too, to accommodate his big size, obviously. Sometimes, he felt like a giant. He wasn't Kokiri, he knew that well enough and the fact was pretty well known, but there were always a few people who liked to remind him.

Luckily, they seemed to be out of sight today.

The village was an establishment that weaved through a small portion of Faron Forest, houses and building carved out of trees and earth. Deeper into the forest was the Lost Woods, an enchanting place with flute-playing Skull Kids and Wolfos where Link spent most of his time. If you were able to hear the melody of the woods and follow it to its source, you could find an old, decrepit temple, and that was where he had first met Epona.

The river flowed around the village on one side before disappearing into the Lost Woods. Link would wash up just outside them, at a bend in the river that was quite secluded and sheltered. He could get down to business and do what he needed, as well as take a bath, in privacy.

Picking his way through the undergrowth, he sat the bucket down and unceremoniously dumped the stuff out onto the gravel. Looking at all of the dirty cloth, he tried to remember the last time he had actually washed them, the last time he had washed with soap instead of just taking a swim. He got a vague image for a second, but it had been so long ago that it was insignificant. With nobody around, he chuckled quietly to himself and grabbed the washboard, soap, and the bottom sheet to his mattress and then got to work.

* * *

A scream cut though the relaxing sounds of the river just as he was putting on his freshly scrubbed clothes.

All of his laundry was washed, all of it, ready to be hung up, and Link couldn't recall the last time he had felt so clean and refreshed. His dark brown hair was damp but hung in oil-free tendrils about his face, curling slightly and as light as feathers. His bed sheets and clothes sat in sopping piles in their respective buckets along with the cleaning supplies, ready to be hung up to dry, and he was just about to grudgingly admit that Siari had been right all along when some shill cry suddenly erupted from the forest.

Caught off-guard, leaned over to grab his tunic, he jerked backwards, almost leaping out of his skin. A blush spread across his cheeks as his mind immediately flew to the conclusion that someone must have seen him getting dressed or something. Had someone seriously seen him naked and screamed? His blue eyes darted around, baffled, but he saw nobody, which was even worse. An icy cold feeling crawled up his back and he shivered.

'_Who had screamed then?_'

Immediately, he went from embarrassed and blushing to serious and still. Another scream and he had forgotten his tunic, and the fact that he only had his pants on and no weapon, and was running into the Lost Woods.

After shoving his ways through the undergrowth, he came skittering into a clearing. Three Stalfos were trying to climb a tree where a terrified Kokiri girl was at. Just as he came onto the scene, she screamed again and kicked at a reaching skeletal hand.

It was three against one, so Link didn't bother with trying to pull their attention away from the tree. He picked up the nearest fallen branch and charged them, sweeping it in a vicious circle that hit the trio hard in the back of each of their heads, sending them off of their feet. The shock of the hit painfully jumped up Link's arms to his shoulders, and though he rather have his bow, he would have to deal with the bluntness and compensate with brute strength. He never had been particularly good with a sword, but he felt even more out of his element with the branch. But, that was what he had to work with.

He wasted no time hacking away at the fallen monsters, trying to kill them as fast as he could.

"L-Link! Behind you!"

He barely managed to jump to the side as a sword came crashing down where he had just stood, followed by a ghoulish laugh. He turned to see two more Stalfos behind him. The one closest tore its sword from the ground and swung at him again as his partner circled to get behind him. The three that had been on the ground jumped up while he was distracted, and before he knew it, he was completely surrounded.

"Cripes!"

The Stalfos didn't even cast a glance at the girl in the tree; they had a new, more delicious target they could take their malicious energy out on. Link's grip on the branch tightened and he waited grimly to see how they would all react, throwing a glance at the Kokiri girl and trying to convey the message with his eyes that she should get the heck out of that tree while the monsters were trained on him. He didn't think she understood as she reached over, plucked a fruit from nearby, and threw it at one of the skeletons. The fruit smashed wetly on the head of one, but all that got was a nasty gleam to appear in the creature's glowing eyes and a dark laugh.

Link suppressed a sigh, mentally smacking his palm to his forehead, and knew today was going to turn out to be a long day. If he survived it, that is.

There was another deep, gurgling laugh, followed by four others, and then one suddenly lunged at him. Using the branch, he deflected the attack, circling it around the old sword and shoving it away before lunging forward to try and stab the wood through the monster's neck. To his dismay, the wood glanced harmlessly off, only managing to make the Stalfos stumble back a bit.

A battered shield rammed in to his backside and he himself went stumbling, letting himself fall into a roll, barely missing another swinging sword. Moving to his feet, he turned the branch to block a vertical attack and the blunt sword has enough force to snap his makeshift weapon. Cursing, he darted forward while the sword was still down, punching the Stalfos in the head as hard as he could, feeling his knuckles grimace in protest as it reeled backwards. Not missing a beat, Link followed, grabbed the skeleton's head in his hands, and twisted it savagely until it disconnected and the body fell limp to the ground.

With a growl, Link whirled around to face the others, daring them to keep up with their assault. Even though they now seemed a little more weary and weren't grinning as widely, one went ahead and jumped at him, sword poised to cut him in half. Just as he dodged it, two more decided to join in, and quick as fire, a blade slid across his bare abdomen, leaving an angry red cut in its wake. The Hylian's cry was cut off as another made a slash across his arm and a shield rammed into the side of his head, knocking him to the ground.

Stars and glittering fairies flashed across his vision and he struggled to get up and continue fighting, spitting dirt as a Stalfos kicked him in the chest. Dark chuckles seemed to come from all direction and he felt a heavy boot stomp onto his back, imagining one was getting ready to try and decapitate him. Taking a deep breath, blood on fire, he rolled suddenly, knocking the monster off, and then swept his leg into a circle to trip all those who surrounded him.

One fell and dropped its sword, and as Link rose, he snatched it up. A hand clutched at the cut on his chest as he pointed the sword at them, breathing hard and now covered in dirt and blood.

The pack of Stalfos scrambled up and a stare-down ensued - Link with his sword and them with their unflinching, toothy grins. There was the grouching of grass behind him, and before he could turn to see what it was, a red streak was leaping over him with a fierce growl, knocking all four Stalfos back to the ground. There was the flash of claws and the sound of snapping teeth and bone, a few startled screeches, and then the Stalfos scattered across the ground as black dust.

The creature whirled around with a snarl, golden eyes flashing dangerously, and started towards Link. He was very still as the beast stopped in front of him, blowing a warm breath across his face that stirred his dark hair. She bumped her muzzle against his chest, making him step back a step, and in response, he ran a finger across her forehead. "Hey there, Epona, I didn't know if you were going to show up for the party or not."

There was a little "oof!" and he looked around his scaly savior to see the Kokiri girl had jumped down from the tree and was running over. At the same time, he heard too-familiar footsteps approaching from the direction Epona had came from and winced.

'_Oh great, here we go…_'

"What in the Faren Forest happened here?" Siari demanded, bright yellow eyes sweeping around the clearing suspiciously before landing on the dirty, bleeding Link and the flustered girl.

"Oh, goddesses! I'm so sorry, Link!" Tears were spilling from the Kokiri's light pink eyes, and she looked from Link to the angry Siari, growing more and more upset. "I thought you were… Siari, I'm so sorry! I was looking for mushrooms and then I got lost and then… and then those Stalfos came! I didn't know what to do… Oh! Link, you're bleeding really bad!"

Link glanced down to see red slowly making its way out form beneath his hand. His arm stung too and his cheek throbbed something terrible. He tried his best not to make eye contact with Siari. "Oh, don't worry about me, Lila… A Stalfos' sword is more blunt than it is sharp, so the cut isn't actually all that deep. It'll just bruise a little. I'm just glad you're okay."

"Link, how can I repay you for your kindness? You were almost killed!" Lila whimpered.

Siari rolled her eyes. "Lila, you repay Link by getting back to the village safely and not wondering off in the woods alone by yourself and into areas you aren't familiar with. You can go home now; I'll take care of Link from here."

Link snorted, "Yeah? And who made you the Great Deku Tree all of a sudden? I can take care of myself."

Lila looked between the two agitated faces wearily, and with one last apology to Link and a bow, she ran off the way Siari had come. When she had left, Siari patted Epona on the shoulder gently but continued to glare. "What in the world were you thinking?"

"What do you mean 'what was I thinking'? I heard someone in trouble so I came to help."

"Without a weapon?"

"Oh, sorry, _excuse me _for my mistake. Next time, I'll be sure to run all the way back to the house and grab my bow, and then run all the way back here. Hopefully, by the time I get to the person in need, they won't be eaten or strewn from here to Ordon."

She growled, "I didn't ask for the sarcasm. Seriously, you could have been killed. What were you doing when you heard her in trouble?"

He sighed in exasperation. "I was washing my clothes and taking a bath like a good little boy."

"Oh, I guess that explains why you were running around the Lost Woods half dressed and acting like an idiot."

It was Link's turn to roll his eyes. Deciding this little talk was as good as over; he turned and started walking back towards the river.

"Where are you going? We need to tend to your wounds before they get infected."

"_We_ don't need to do anything. You can go back to whatever it was you were doing with Epona and I'll do the same."

"What? Why?"

She was following him, as persistent as a hungry flock of keese, irritating the heck out of him. He was really starting to loose hold of his patience. He tried to keep walking without saying anything, but when she tried to grab a hold of his arm, he whirled around. "Siari, stop. Just leave me alone. You don't get it."

She stopped and crossed her arms. "Don't get what?"

"Monsters and danger don't get a day off to clean their houses. If you hadn't badgered me this morning, I would have been able to patrol the woods and keep those Stalfos under control, and Lila wouldn't have been attacked, and I wouldn't have had to protect her without my weapon."

He watched as her yellow hues narrowed to toxic slits, and he knew he had hurt her feelings. He clenched his throbbing jaw challengingly nonetheless, and waited for her reply.

Siari flipped her bangs away from her face and turned around, stalking away from him. "If that's how you feel, Mr. Hero."

Forcing himself to turn around as well, he started back to the river again, trying to ignore the guilt that suddenly burned hotter than his cuts. Those had been some harsh words, not something he should be saying to a good friend who was just concerned. What was wrong with him?

'_Oh well,_' he told himself grimly, '_this was a harsh world. And it didn't pause for cleaning days._'

* * *

The tree house was clean. The clothes and bedspread were dry and in their respective places. The wood shined in the evening light and his hands smelled strongly of Deku seed oil as he took a tentative gulp of red potion and winced at its strange taste.

A tingling and itching sensation washed over him and the aggravated slashes on his abdomen and arm began to twitch. Making a f ace, he dumped some of the red substance out onto his hand and dabbed it across the openings of his wounds and inside them before taking a couple of long strips of clean cloth and wrapping it around the area. He was tying off the last makeshift bandage on his arm with a hand and his teeth when he heard the soft tinkering sound of a fairy.

Link looked up to see a silver and white fairy hovering in the air in front of his face and he jerked back, eyes growing wide.

"_Link? The Great Deku Tree would like to see you for something. He wants you to come to the Meadow right away._"

He never could see their actual bodies, just a bright light and wings. The Kokiri - their eyes could see past that. Supposedly, the creatures resembled little people. The majority of them lived here with the Kokiri, and all Forest Children had a fairy guide that was suppose to aid them and be their companions. There were exclusively pinkish-colored fairies that could heal a person upon contact, but outside of special fairy springs, they could be hard to find. Link had seen a few here and there, fluttering through the undergrowth among the little sprites, but they weren't very approachable and hard to catch.

"The Great Deku Tree would like to see me? Alright then, give me a minute."

Shoving the cork back into the glass potion bottle, he gingerly put on his green tunic and followed the fairy outside. The trip down the latter seemed to feel worse than when he had came up it a little bit ago, and he winced the whole way down. The silvery fairy circled around him impatiently, "_Come on! We don't have all evening! The Great Deku Tree wants to see you as soon as possible!_'"

Link tried not to scowl as he followed her through the village and down the forest path that led to the Meadow.

The forest trees abruptly were replaced with lush green grass and flowers, spotted here and there with large boulders and a few bushes. Fairy light flickered through the plants and a large sighing breeze swept through, scooping all of the sprites out of their hiding places momentarily before they drifted back down like some sort of celestial snowfall. A giant tree sat in the middle of the great opening, large roots sprawling in all directions, disappearing into the forest and the ground. The side of the tree that faced Link had knots and wrinkles that made up a face.

Walking up to it a good distance, he bowed as the fairy darted forward, "_Master, I have brought the boy as you requested!_"

Link looked up to see the great tree's eyes open and though there were no actual eyes, only dark holes, he knew that the being was looking right at him. There was the groan and pop of wood, and then a deep, rumbling voice that sounded a couple hundred years old. "Why, good evening Link, so nice to see you in one piece. Thank you, dear Arul, you may go for now."

The Hylian couldn't help but wince at the 'in one piece' bit, and fought the urge to fidget in place. "Hello, Great Deku Tree, I am honored to be in your presence. I have gathered you know what happened today." Maybe that was what this was all about.

"I know all things that happen within this Green Realm. Here, have a seat, you must be tired." A tree root rose out of the ground and Link sat down gratefully. "I know about your fight with the Stalfos, those nasty creatures… and with Siari."

Link grimaced, but said nothing.

"Though your intentions to save Lila were noble, your temper was less than satisfactory. Lila and Tyla both came to me today, and though I'm sure Siari's pride was hurt a little, most of their concern was for you. They say you've been acting a little… off here of late. Is anything bothering you, child?"

Link sighed. Though the Great Deku Tree couldn't really move, it never missed a thing, and apparently, neither did timid Lila and Siari's fairy. Tattle-tales. He supposed Siari herself and Dalec had also noticed. Maybe he just wasn't as good at hiding things as he had thought he was. "Well, I guess I haven't been sleeping too good here lately. I've been having these strange dreams about people and places I have never seen before. It is all nonsense."

The giant tree seemed to lean forward a little, "Just nonsense, you say? They plague you to the point that you have shadows under your eyes and you lash out at your friends, and you call that nonsense? Hmph. You have much to learn, young one. But, a wise tree like me just might have the solution to your problems as well."

Deep blue eyes glanced up curiously at that from their fierce studying of a flower to study the tree.

"I have these papers that need to be delivered to the Headmaster of Lanaryru Academy, a school for Hyrule's most elite class, and I would like you to be the one to deliver them in the morning. You can take some clothes and your temple beast, and be sure to apologize with Siari before you go… and maybe say bye to a few others while you are at it."

Link raised an eyebrow suspiciously. Say by to all of his friends before he leaves? How long did the Great Deku Tree think it was going to take him to deliver these papers anyways? Did the tree have that little of faith in his abilities and in Epona's for that matter? "Uh, of course, I'd be honored to (I guess). Where are the papers?"

"Hmm…" The Deku Tree had to think about it for a few minutes, and just when Link thought he'd have to search the extensive meadow for them himself, the tree's branches perked up. "Ah, yes. Zak! Where are you, Zak?"

A bush quivered to Link's left and a beige hair-covered head popped up out of it. "You called, Master?" Since the Great Deku Tree couldn't really move all that well, Zak was his assistant - running messages and doing deliveries that the fairies couldn't handle. He also represented the tree in counsels outside the forest sometimes, and as a result, looked only a handful younger than Link.

The Advisor's nose twitched in the breeze and his large brown eyes narrowed as they swept over the waiting Hylian. For someone so important, he sure reminded Link of some ill-tempered ferret. He was shrewd and touchy, friendly one moment and then ready to bite off your fingers the next. For some reason, he always gave Link odd looks that were usually made up of narrowed eyes and a frowning mouth. He wasn't sure where he and Zak stood. It was rumored that he had a soft, even temperament that he reserved for Siari alone.

"Zak, where are those… papers I gave you earlier today? Link is going to deliver them to the Academy tomorrow morning."

"Oh, those _one_ papers. I see." Zack ducked back down into the bush that Link assumed covered the door to his home, and then popped up again with an envelope stamped with the Great Deku Tree's sap in way of an official seal. "Here they are, Link. Be careful and don't loose them. They are very important papers."

The papers were warm in his hands and he nodded to the Great Deku Tree and then to Zak before heading back up to the path and into the forest once again.

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**So, since you've made it this far, review please, with comments, criticism, questions, and so forth! I hope you all are looking forward to the next chapter~**


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